1. The Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to tuning channels in a home entertainment system. More specifically, the present invention is directed to systems and methods for tuning a channel using a central point of control in a home entertainment system that includes an interconnection of a television set or another display device and various consumer electronics devices such as VCRs, stereo systems, video disk players, satellite receivers, cable boxes, video game players, and Internet terminal devices.
2. The Prior State of the Art
The television has been a source of entertainment for individuals since its introduction and traditionally has been a fairly simple device for users to set up and connect. A user simply unboxed the television, connected the antenna, plugged in the power cord and turned on the television. Once on, a user could control the functions of the television by adjusting dials or buttons on the television or sending information to the television via a remote control.
Since the inception of television, other consumer electronics devices that may be connected to a television have been introduced. For instance, VCRs, video disk players, and video game devices provide enhanced entertainment. Cable television services and satellite receivers along with traditional broadcast antennas provide reception of video programming. Home theater systems provide surround sound and near theater quality audio. Internet terminals, such as WebTV boxes developed by WebTV Networks, Inc., of Mountain View, Calif., allow consumers to connect to the Internet and to send and receive information, using a television as the display device. Using the foregoing electronic consumer devices or others in combination with a television, consumers can now select and configure a wide variety of home entertainment systems.
Although many consumer electronics devices now exist, connecting, continuing, and managing multiple devices in order to realize the full benefit of each component of a home entertainment can be extremely difficult and frustrating. It can be a difficult task for a user of a home entertainment system to determine how to interconnect the multiple electronic consumer devices of the entertainment system such that each is appropriately connected to the television. The difficulty increases as more devices are connected to the television. And even when properly configured and interconnected, the performance of each device suffers when the television is connected to multiple devices. Thus, while diverse types of consumer electronics devices are increasingly available for inclusion into a home entertainment system, the overall result is often one of confusion, suboptimal performance, or a less than ideal user experience.
The conventional method for connecting devices in a home entertainment system is the “daisy chain” method. To illustrate the conventional daisy chain method and the magnitude of its limitations, reference will now be made to FIGS. 1-3, which depict an increasing level of complexity as consumer electronics devices are added to a home entertainment system. FIG. 1 illustrates a basic configuration that enables a user to access television without any scrambled channels and to access the Internet. A television antenna jack 14 is connected to an Internet terminal 12, which can be a special-purpose computer system that enables Internet access and permits a user to browse and retrieve information from the Internet to the television screen. One such Internet terminal is the previously-mentioned WebTV box. Internet terminal 12 is in turn connected to a television 10. Both Internet terminal 12 and television 10 are connected to an A/C power jack 18. Internet terminal 12 is also connected to a telephone jack 20. A remote control 16 enables the user to provide input to the Internet terminal 12. In this basic configuration, the user experience is generally relatively high. The greatest potential source of confusion is introduced by the many ways to connect the television 10. The user typically has to match the television output of Internet terminal 12 with the corresponding channel, such as channel 2, 3 or 4, of television 10. In addition, depending on the television programming signal available and the nature of the components of the home entertainment system, the connection between Internet terminal 12 and television 10 may be established by coaxial cable, RCA cables, or S-video cables. Once the appropriate connections are established, the home entertainment system of FIG. 1 operates on a relatively intuitive and understandable way.
As one more device is introduced into the home entertainment system, the user experience is often significantly diminished. If one or more of the channels are scrambled or if the cable feed is digital, the home entertainment system must include a cable box, as illustrated in FIG. 2. The cable television jack 24 is connected to a conventional cable box 22, which is connected to Internet terminal 12, which is connected in turn to television 10. Internet terminal 12 and television 10 are also connected to the an A/C power jack 18, while Internet terminal 12 is further connected to a telephone jack 20. In order to allow a user to change channels and control the various devices by remote control 16, Internet terminal 12 may incorporate a mechanism that prevents the user from having to use a separate remote control for each consumer electronics device and enables components of the home entertainment system to be controlled even if they are not in the line of sight of remote control device 16. For example, Internet terminal 12 can have an associated IR blaster (an infrared emitter) 26 for relaying remote control signals from Internet terminal 12 to one or more other consumer electronics devices. In the example of FIG. 2, the user can change channels on cable box 22 by transmitting the appropriate signal from remote control device 16 to Internet terminal 12. Internet terminal 12 then relays the signal to cable box 22 using IR blaster 26.
The interdevice connection required for the cable television and Internet access illustrated in FIG. 2 introduces several problems and limitations. This configuration requires not only the television 10 be tuned to the appropriate input channel, but also Internet terminal 12 be properly tuned. The difficulty of connecting the devices of FIG. 2 is compounded by the fact that television 10 and the Internet terminal 12 may need to be tuned to different channels. Therefore, when Internet terminal 12 is turned off and the cable box signal is “passed through” to television 10, an unexpected television channel from cable box 22 may appear on the television.
Despite its usefulness, IR blaster 26 further complicates the task of configuring the home entertainment system. In particular, the user must position IR blaster 26 so that IR receiver 28, located on the cable box 22, can receive the signal from the IR blaster. This sometimes requires significant trial and error. Further, signals from remote control 16 sometimes interfere with the signals emitted from IR blaster 26, causing an undesired response from cable box 22.
Adding yet another consumer electronics device to the home entertainment system has been associated with an unacceptable level of complexity for many users who practice conventional interconnection techniques. In one example, FIG. 3 illustrates a conventional configuration 8 that includes a VCR. The daisy chain includes cable television jack 24, cable box 22, VCR 30, Internet terminal 12, and television 10. Internet terminal 12, television 10, and VCR 30 receive power by being each connected to A/C power jack 18 via adapter 32. Internet terminal 12 is also connected to a telephone jack 20, an IR blaster 26 for relaying remote control signals to IR receiver 28 on cable box 22, and another IR blaster 34 for relaying remote controls signals to IR receiver 36 on VCR 30. The difficulty of understanding how to connect and operate the home entertainment system of FIG. 2 is exacerbated by the addition of VCR 30 of FIG. 3.
In this configuration, VCR 30, Internet terminal 12, and television 10 each needs to be tuned to channel 2, 3, or 4. The user can experience confusion as different channels appear on television 10, depending on which devices are on or off. Additionally, VCRs generally have a function which allows the user to either pass through the RF from the cable box 22 or use the internal tuner of the VCR. Thus, it can be difficult for Internet terminal 12 to determine whether an incoming signal is transmitted from cable box 22 or from the tuner within VCR 30. The user of the home entertainment system of FIG. 3 must program Internet terminal 12 to control cable box 22 and VCR 30, as well as program remote control 16 to control television 10. There is also the possibility that signals from remote control 16 could interfere with those emitted from IR blaster 26 and IR blaster 34. The specific order of devices in the daisy chain of FIG. 3 limits how the devices can interoperate. For instance, VCR 30 can record the output of cable box 22, but not the output of Internet terminal 12. Certain imaginative uses of VCR 30 cannot be practiced because of the specific daisy chain configuration required in the system of FIG. 3, in which some video output, such as that generated by Internet terminal 12, is not received by the VCR.
It can be understood that the home entertainment system configurations of FIGS. 1-3 represent only a small number of the many configurations that are possible. Many multiple-device systems that do not include an Internet terminal likewise suffer from complex interconnection configurations that limit their use by consumers and otherwise prevent multiple consumer electronics devices from being advantageously used in combination. The basic problems illustrated in FIGS. 1-3 can be expected to deepen as new consumer electronics devices are developed and marketed.